No Cats Allowed - The Kracker Cat Blog

Zed - the latest addition to the Kracker Cats

2009-10-24T23:00:00.003-08:00

Here is Nabysko with Zed - the latest addition to the Kracker Cats. You will recall that Bryce, Nabysko's boyrfriend, is allergic to cats. That's why they went so long without a cat. But finally they got Juniper and, despite a bit of extra suffering, Bryce wanted them to have two cats.

Bryce liked Jim so much that he wanted that cat to be black. So, recently, they were down in Homer and they came up with this black kitten, Zed.

They bought a big, fancy, air cleaner that is going all the time. It has air-quality indicator lights - blue being best, red being worst. If the cats are a distance aways, the light is usually blue. If a cat come close, it turns red.

And here is Zed.

It is very dark in Nabysko's apartment, and I complained about how hard this made it for me to take a picture. (Oh yes, I know, I could have used flash - but I HATE flash.)

Tryskuit inserted a little light into the picture.

Tryskuit lights up Juniper.

Zed sees the light. I can't help but wonder if he saw anything, afterward.

Nabysko and Zed, in silhouette.

I call him, "Zederick."

I should note that I originally prepared five additional pictures for this post, of Diamond and Slick. However, Bill Hess needs to make a post on his blog in the parallel universe and both he and I are very tired, so we agreed that he would post the other five there, which you can find here.

However, if you click on the link and do not find the cats, that is because you have gone there before 4:00 AM AKDT, Sunday, October 25, 2009, when the Wasilla blog post is scheduled to go up. That would be 8:00 AM East Coast DT.

Royce grows old

2009-10-14T21:23:00.001-08:00

I hate to say it, but Royce is growing very old and ever more feeble. I don't know how much time we have left with him. Yesterday, Sunflower wondered if we should dig a hole in the backyard before freezeup. That could be any day now. Last year, it had happened by now.

It is very hard to dig a grave back there, once the ground has frozen.

Still, I don't think we will dig that hole now. Perhaps Royce can make it through another winter. I hope so. I think so. I'm not sure.

Of course, we are never sure, about any of us.

We are going to lose Martigne and Muzzy very soon - but for a better reason. Toast Ed and Sunflower are in the process of closing on a house in Anchorage. Once they do, they will move these two and little Wry into that house with them.

What will we do out here then?

A warm gathering between toddler, dad and cat ends in a high note

2009-10-06T00:51:00.000-08:00

Little Wry, Royce and Toast Ed were all snug and warm on the couch, enjoying each other's company.

Little Wry was overcome with an innocent, sweet, expression. This is when a toddler is at his most dangerous.

Suddenly, little Wry jumps up and kicks Dad... well, you know. Dad screams.

Now little Wry drops down with his knee. Royce is worried, but holds his ground.

Wry is very pleased. Royce ponders his own safety. Toast Ed squeaks out a few high notes.

I see a white cat as I walk past the house where the chicken crossed the road and the rooster got shot and the little dog nearly killed the rabbit

2009-09-16T01:06:00.001-08:00

Yes, many things involving animals seem to happen at this house. And today, I walked by and saw this cat chatting with these goats.

The goats are a little hard to see, but they are there, on the deck, peeking out from behind the fence.

For you, Heidi: Pistol-Yero

2009-09-02T00:08:00.002-08:00

Heidi, I took these pictures of Pistol-Yero just for you. Here he is, on the bed where he sleeps with Jim and me (and when Sunflower heals, her, too).

He ponders my lens.

He reaches out to touch it. I pull it away before he can.

Jimmy grooms Pistol-Yero, Pistol-Yero grooms Jimmy.

Pistol-Yero and I, in my office.

To anyone else who may stop by, I did this for Heidi because she made a special request in a comment that she made on my last post.

The negligent cat blogger

2009-08-27T00:11:00.000-08:00

I have been most negligent concerning this blog recently. It is not because I want to be or have lost interest, it is just simply that I have become spread altogether too thin. Furthermore, I have become exhausted. I am exhausted when I go to bed at night, I am exhausted when I get up, I am exhausted at every point during the day.

But still I do quite a few things. The other day, as I walked, I saw this black cat ahead.

Funny. More than eight years have now passed since I lost my original black cat, Little Guy. I searched relentlessly for Little Guy. I made posters and put them up everywhere.

I drove to the pound, 12 miles away, again and again and again in the hope that he would show up there, even though I knew he would not.

And when I saw this black cat, eight-and-a-half years later, my heart leaped to my throat.

And then the cat saw me and ran off into trees.

And here is my shadow, hanging over Varmit, who lives with Dan, the camera shy man.

Varmit.

And here is a calico that I spotted yesterday as I pedaled my bike about Wasilla.

And here is my own calico buddy, Chicago, with Royce, today. They are enjoying a wild, raucous, time, chasing grizzly bears through their dreams.

One of these days, I will get caught up, rested up and I will steam forward on this blog once again. Don't give up on me.

Juniper comes for a visit, gets together with Wry

2009-08-23T22:14:00.000-08:00

I looked out my front window and was surprised to see that there was a tiny cow out in the yard, grazing on the grass. A really tiny cow. The tiniest cow that I had ever seen. I went out to investigate.

Why, it was not a cow at all! It was Juniper! That must mean that Nabysko was nearby.

Little Wry spotter Juniper, too, and skedadeled over. He was surprised. Wry does not see Juniper often.

"H'mmm," Wry contemplated. He seemed to wonder if she was safe to pet.

Nabysko appeared and gave Juniper a pet. This gave Wry confidence. He reached out to do the same.

Wry gives Juniper a pet.

Juniper escapes to the Escape.

Juniper poses by Nabysko's Cavalier.

From inside the front room, Martigne looks out the window. She is jealous. She wants to be out there, too.

Soon, the action moves to the back yard.

Juniper spots a bumble bee.

Juniper does some more grazing.

Toast Ed made this pile after the snow melted. We are waiting until the snow falls again and then we will burn it. Juniper decides to climb it.

Wry discovers that Juniper has climbed up the rubbish pile.

His dad gives Wry a boost so that he can better see. Juniper decides to leave.

Down Juniper goes.

But soon, she climbs right back up. That's because she can see the entire world from up there. Juniper believes that the entire world belongs to her.

And so it does.

Jimmy helps me edit pictures

2009-08-13T00:03:00.001-08:00

I hate to remove the picture of Wry pointing to the clouds as he rests his head upon Royce from the big picture spot, but this blog needs to move on.

As usual, I spent most of today sitting right here in front of my computer, editing the the pictures that I took on my recent Arctic Slope trip for the special issue of Uiñiq Magazine that I am putting together. I am way behind, due to Margie's injury, but I will get it done.

Jimmy spent the day with me, helping out, offering pointers. Here, he looks right into my eye, because the picture that you see on the screen, of Iñupiat Eskimo caribou hunters swarmed by mosquitoes, is reflected there. Using this method, Jimmy studies the picture so that he can tell me how it should be cropped.

This is how Jimmy thinks that I should crop the picture. I disagree. Jimmy is a lousy picture editor.

The love story between toddler Wry and Old Man Orange Cat Royce reaches the clouds

2009-08-10T01:15:00.002-08:00

Tryskuit and Charlie came to visit Sunday. Late in the evening, they went out to pick blueberries. A bit later, I went looking for them. This is how I found them.

Tryskuit got bit by a mosquito.

There really weren't that many berries. This is because little Wry and Toast Ed had already made a few trips through here, picking and eating all the berries they could.

Speaking of Toast Ed and Wry - here they come, with that giant, strange looking cat, Muzzy!

Now it's Wry, Royce and Muzzy! I wonder if they will find more berries?

No, but Wry finds grass, going to seed.

Royce gets up and heads to a spot where he thinks the grass will be taller.

Wry follows, then sits down beside him.

Sure enough, the grass is taller.

Wry reaches for the grass.

Wry studies the grass.

Wry uses Royce for a pillow.

Wry suddenly notices a beautiful cloud, passing overhead in the deep, blue, sky. He points it out to Royce, who does not care. But Royce does care about the boy. Royce loves the boy.

Ah, yes. A magic moment, one that will last forever.

A time of high ambition and roaring energy in the Kracker house

2009-08-08T21:29:00.002-08:00

As you can see, Pistol is full of energy, vigor, and vim.

So is Jim.

And Martigny, too.

Chicago can hardly be constrained. This is how we all are around here, right now. Give us some time. Rest will come, energy will be restored, Sunflower will heak and we will all be back as we were.

I just need about a 20 year nap, that's all.

So it shouldn't be too long.

2009-07-31T22:25:00.001-08:00

Do not expect any good photography or clever stories from me tonight, folks. I am drained and exhausted and it is all I can do to make a post at all - but I feel I must post just so you will know that Grahamn Kracker is keeping this blog alive. Those of you who visit the blog in the parallel universe already know what we have been through here since Sunflower fell and hurt herself.

Those of you who don't can find out right here: Sunflower's ordeal.

You can see how drained Toast Ed and Prickly Pear Blossom are. Thank goodness, Chicago is there to help get them through it.

And here is Royce, getting a drink. I know some of you will be greatly concerned to see such a picture and will want to admonish me to keep him indoors and serve him only the cleanest of water, but Royce is at least 15 years old now, maybe sixteen and he has lived this way all of his life.

We cannot change him now.

Royce walks away from his reflection.

Oh, my! The accident had not yet happened when I took this picture. We had just gotten up and the day was pleasant and we thought that it would remain so. It did not.

Pistol-Yero at 1:07 in the afternoon.

Little Wry Kracker and Muzzy, the strangest looking of all the Kracker cats.

Oh no! This picture got in here twice! Well, I am too lazy to go to html and take it out. That's how exhausted.
Oh, my! They really are exhausted.

And so am I. What would I do, without Jim to help get me through such moments?

Cleo finds a new home in Alaska

2009-07-28T22:58:00.000-08:00

Readers probably think that I have abandoned this blog; given up on it altogether. This is not correct. What is a hard fact, however, is that I just spent five weeks traveling on the Arctic Slope, where I visited five communities, and in that time I saw and met a total of but one cat, Sigñiq, who I photographed and introduced to you.

I am back home, now, exhausted, and with a new crisis to face as my lovely Sunflower has once again gone down with an excruciatingly painful knee injury, but at least I among my own cat buddies, who will soon begin to pop up in this blog again.

In the meantime, I did meet this character, Cleo, at the Anchorage airport shortly after my flight from Barrow landed and deboarded.

Cleo had just moved to Anchorage from Colorado.

I did a short interview with him:

Me: "Cleo, why did you choose to leave your home in Colorado to move to Alaska?"

Cleo: "Meow."

Me: "I see. I agree completely. Alaska is God's favorite place. And how was your flight?"

Cleo: "Meow."

Me: "That bad, huh?"

Cleo: "Meow! Meow! Meow!"

Me: "Well! Certainly I would agree that she should be reprimanded, but don't you think it would have been a little extreme to have opened the door and thrown the Stewardess out?"

Cleo: "Meow."

Me: "Actually, it's cats that always land on their feet, so she wouldn't have been okay. Besides, even if she did land on her feet, it was sixty below up there, so she would have been a popsicle and would have shattered when she hit the ground."

Cleo: "Meow."

Me: "Yes, I can accept that as punishment instead. It would be a real eye and nose-opener for her to have to fly from Denver to Anchorage in a little cage with a little tiny litter box that was always shifting around. But how do you feel about spending the rest of your life in Alaska?"

Cleo: "Purrrrrrrr...."

Siqñiq - with her around, the Arctic is always a sunny, warm, place

2009-07-01T22:29:00.005-08:00

Look! Sun shines out through the window! From the inside to the outside. The cat that you see is Siqñiq, and Siqñiq is the Iñupiaq Eskimo word for sun.

The month of April is typically very cold in the Arctic coast village of Wainwright, Alaska. Two years ago in April, Cora Akpik made a visit to the nearest city, Barrow, 97 miles away. She learned that her grown daughter had a cat that she had been unable to care for, so she had taken it to the vet for safe keeping until it could find a new home.

Cora had never had a cat before, but she decided to make her home the cat's home.

As is the case in most of Alaska, no roads link the Arctic communities to each other and so Cora had to fly home, along with her grandchildren, Nellie and Clyde, who you see here.

The cat, who did not yet have a name, flew along in a cat carrier.

Somehow, the cat escaped from the carrier and jumped onto the back of a woman who sat in front of her. The woman did not know what kind of animal had landed on her back. All she knew is that it had fur and claws.

Cats are not common animals on the Arctic Slope. Wolverines are. For all she knew, a wolverine had just jumped on her. Polar bears are also common in the Arctic. Maybe it was a polar bear. A real tiny one - tiny, but mean. The woman screamed and screamed.

Then she discovered that it was a cat. Everything was alright after that.

After they arrived home, where Cora lives with her husband, Max, Nellie and Clyde and other children and grandchildren, she did not know what to name the gray cat.

She looked out the window. The sky was blue, cold and clear above the snow-blown tundra and the ice-covered ocean. The sun shone brightly.

"Siqñiq!" she said in Iñupiaq.

Thus, Siqñiq was named.

Everybody in the house loves Siqñiq. "She likes to play hide and seek," Nellie says. The baby, by the way, is Cara Ann. Siqñiq is also a guard cat. She sits in the window sill and studies everyone who approaches the house. When they enter the door, she scrutinizes them closely. If she detects that any of them pose a threat to Cara Ann, she attacks, leaps and rips them to shreds.

Fortunately, no one who has ever entered the house has posed any threat at all to Cara Ann. Everybody who enters loves Cara Ann.

Siqñiq has never actually had to attack anyone.

But she scrutinizes everybody - including me.

Glad I passed!

It is expensive to feed Siqñiq. To save money over Barrow prices, the family buys her food and litter at Wal-Mart in Anchorage. From there, they fly it by jet 850 miles to Barrow and then by commuter airline to Wainwright.

Lemmings like to run around the Arctic Slope and all about the village of Wainwright. Siqñiq keeps them out of the house.

Siqñiq.

Nobody who I talked to could think of a single other cat living in Wainwright today. Siqniq may be the only one.

I did not meet any cat in Point Lay, the village that I visited just before Wainwright.

I expect to be back in the Arctic for most all of July. Anyone who wishes to follow my travels can click right here:

http://wasillaalaskaby300.squarespace.com/

We find the final cat that we would meet in India in a rather fruity situation

2009-06-22T01:07:00.006-08:00

There is a certain fruit shop near Soundarya's home in Bangalore where she likes to buy and she had recently discovered that a kitten had moved in. So she took us there.

Have you noticed how many orange and white cats there are in India? They seem to be a majority.

Tryskuit snuggles the kitten.

The shop owner said that the kitten had moved in about two weeks before and that he liked him. He wanted him to stay, and grow up as a store kitten.

"What is his name?" I asked.

"Cat," he answered.

Cat takes a great leap.

If he were a vegetarian, Cat would be Fat Cat.

Soundarya snuggles little Cat. As you can imagine, she had been feeling quite down about the calico. Yet, as hard as life is, live moves on and so she smiles again.

And she hugs her little friend. The next day, we, the humans, would all say goodbye at the Bangalore airport. There would be many hugs and tears, too. Tryskuit and I would fly home.

So that is it. For now.

Tomorrow, I head back to Alaska's Arctic Slope.

The world is forever changing before me. And always, I look to meet new cats.

We stop by to see a talking parrot and find Persians for sale

2009-06-19T18:58:00.001-08:00

In the evening of the day that we learned the horrible news about the little calico, Sandy took Tryskuit and I into downtown Bangalore to buy some gifts before we left for home. This would be our last night in India this trip.

She knew of a pet supply store where there was a talking parrot and she wanted to go see that parrot. "Are there any cats there?" I asked.

She did not think that there were, but, when we walked through the door, we saw a cage full of Persians. Their price - about $350 US each. That's a huge sum for the average person in Bangalore, although as the high-tech capital of India, the place has boomed and many people have become prosperous and a substantial number downright rich.

It is my hope that these cats soon find humans who will open not only their pocket books to them, but their hearts.

Tryskuit opened her heart and made a connection.

More Persians waiting for prosperous people to adopt them.

This orange boy is not for sale. His people have gone on vacation and the pet store is providing hotel services until they get back. He is not happy with the accommodations.

Sandy reaches through and gives him a pet.

Very shortly, we would go into another store and meet yet one more cat. I will introduce him in my next post, and then that will be all for this trip to India.

The Momma Cat is left to cry for her calico baby

2009-06-16T21:37:00.006-08:00

We arose before the sun the morning after the reunion and took off on a three day drive. It was marvelous trip, during which we experienced a small but significant part of the wonder that is India.

On the second night, after we checked into a little hotel in the village of Badami, which sits in the midst of a region of ancient Hindu ruins, many of which are not ruined at all, I heard the cry of a kitten.

I stepped into a nicely kept lawn surrounded by the "u" shaped hotel on three sides and a swimming pool on the fourth. A man sat, eating, at a table.

"Did you hear a kitten?" I asked him.

"Oh yes," he said. "It will show up soon." And it did. But it was wild and frightened, and neither Tryskuit or I could draw near to it. I failed to get a picture.

At the end of the third day, we turned back toward Bangalore on a drive that would last all through the night.

As we rolled down the busy Indian Highway, lightning blasting around us, my mind frequently turned to the Momma and her babies. I wondered how they were doing. I worried, but then I worry about many things. I consoled myself that they would be fine.

When we arrived back at the house at about 5:00 AM, I listened, but could hear no cats. Trusting that this meant that they were asleep, I went to sleep myself for a few hours - as did everybody else.

About 9:00 AM, I was woken by the forlorn and lonely "meow" of Momma cat. I listened, but did not hear the answer of a kitten in return.

Tryskuit and I then searched and searched, but we could find no sign of the kittens. We asked those who had stayed behind, and they said they had seen both kittens the day before, but not today.

Then, as I downloaded the trip pictures from my camera into the laptop, the woman next door, the one who had been feeding Momma cat, opened her door. There, standing beside her, next to her very own bowl of milk, was the orange kitten.

The woman had not seen the calico, but had heard a bit of commotion, found the orange kitten on the ground and had brought it into her house for its safety. I understood that she would now adopt it, even as she continued to feed the mother.

We continued to search. We put out our inquiry as to the whereabouts of the calico as far as we could - then we learned the horrid news. It had been eaten by a street dog.

Look at the Momma! How she did cry. No tears - but she cried. Her pain was bitter. I petted her and petted her, as did Tryskuit in turn. She seemed to take some solace in those pets, but they did not wipe away her pain.

I felt as though I had been kicked in the chest. Tears came to my own eyes. I did not let them linger, for to do so would do no one any good.

And as she cried, a male black came wandering by, a tom, then quickly disappeared.

Little One: I saw your great desire to live - I saw it in your eager posture, the glow in your eye, the plea in your meow. I saw you frightened, and alone, when your mother and your orange sibling got stuck in the little building and, with Tryskuit at my side and Buddy amused but eager to help, we did not stop our efforts for you until you were reunited with your family.

Then I saw your relief, your joy, and how quickly you put the fright behind you as you romped with your sibling, and suckled your mother.

I did all that I could for you, Little Kitten, but it was not enough.

How I wanted to pull you in and give you shelter of the safest kind, but I was not in a position to do so. How I wanted to pick you up, hold you, stroke you, comfort you, but I did not want to frighten you so I never did.

Some who will visit this page will say that you are at the Rainbow Bridge. For those who find comfort in the thought of such a bridge, where the spirits of deceased pets play and romp until that day when they can be reunited with their humans, fine, that is all very good and I encourage you to take your comfort there, for comfort should be taken where it can be found.

Thoughts of such a bridge do not comfort me, for those thoughts slam into hard reality.

Those who I was with at the time of your death believe that you will come back again, in another body, another form, perhaps human, again and again until at last you are perfected into ultimate happiness and glory.

To me, you were perfect already.

As stated in my previous post, I have but one source of solace. That is the happiness that I saw when you and your family were all reunited, when you suckled at your mother's teat. For that moment, which I helped to create for you, as did Tryskuit and Buddy, all was well. For that moment, the world was a warm and beautiful place.

In this matter, that knowledge is my sole solace.

A mishap separates the family; Tryskuit and I launch a rescue effort to reunite them

2009-06-14T21:45:00.002-08:00

Later, that very same day, I was working on my laptop when Tryskuit burst into the room where I had set up shop. "Dad!" she exclaimed. "There is a big drama happening with the cats!"

Apparently, the small orange one had worked its way off the roof and had then fallen through a high window in a tiny little building connected at the back to the home of our hosts. Momma Cat had then leaped through that window, knocking out a pane of glass as she did.

Now, she and the orange kitten were stuck inside. The little calico was stranded, all alone, on the eave where they had made their new home - as you can see above. I followed Tryskuit out to the second floor overlook. We could hear the Momma and the calico meowing to each other.

It was a sad and forlorn sound.

We could hear nothing at all from the little orange kitten.

The calico retreated to a position beneath the tin roof. Her tail and one leg protruded beyond.

The calico peeks back out at me. At first, I thought it would be an easy matter to reunite the little family. As the little room where the Momma and the orange had gotten themselve stuck in was connected to the home of our hosts, Murthy and Vasanthi, I figured that it was theirs' and that they would have a key to it.

It was not theirs' and they did not have the key. It belonged to a woman who lived on the second floor of the house directly behind hers and she had the key. They figured that in time, she would appear, hear the meows and let the kittens out.

I had no idea how long such a thing might take or what might happen in the meantime. As I pondered this situation, a raven landed on the wall over the calico kitten, took a good look at it and then flew away.

If that raven - or others - were to become convinced that this calico was alone and helpless...

And then we learned that the lady had rented the little room out to a man who slept there, but who was gone for four or five more days to come.

We could not wait. Something had to be done now. I felt rather odd about it, but I climbed over the wall you see here, then crossed the flat roof on the other side to the door of the second story residence.

I could hear voices inside, speaking in their native tongue. I knocked on the door. The voices went silent. No one answered. I waited. Then knocked again. More silence.

So Tryskuit and I went and got Buddy, Vasanthi and Murthy's nephew, on vacation from school. Buddy was a little amused that we were so worried, but he was also willing to help. He went and knocked on the same door that I had and then waited for about half a minute. Someone came to the door.

It was the lady and two children. They came over to peek down at the calico, but it had hidden beneath the corrugated roofing.

Buddy then acted very quickly - quicker than I wanted, because I wanted to photograph the process. He got the key from the lady and headed down, so quickly that, by the time I could secure my camera, cross over myself, find the stairs and prepare to go down, he had already opened the door. The Momma cat had stepped into the entrance.

The Momma cat steps outside the door.

She does not want to leave her orange kitten behind, however, so she steps back in and hunkers down.

The orange kitten rests on a gunny sack inside the home. As I take this picture, Buddy scoops up the Momma cat and heads back up the stairs. I then reach down, take hold of the frightened little orange, lift it to my chest and follow.

Fortunately, Tryskuit was in position on the deck at the Murthy, with her own camera. She documented the action as Buddy came carrying the mother kitten back for a reunion with the calico...

And then Tryskuit photographed me, as I came carrying the little orange kitten. Tryskuit and I were a true team this day.

After returning the mother to the eave, Buddy took the orange from me and prepared to reunite the whole family.

Buddy climbs down with the orange as the Momma cat watches.

As Buddy puts the orange cat down, the Momma retreats beneath the tin roof and the calico steps out.

The orange kitten takes off to join its mother and sister.

Soon, they all reappear. We can feel the joy and relief the family feels at being reunited once again.

Momma cat opens up to her kittens, so that they might have nourishment.

The neighbor lady, who did her part to help, admires the little family.

Tryskuit and I could see and feel the relief and joy the mother felt to be reunited with her baby calico, and to have her orange freed from the little building, to be together with both of them.

Yet, I also thought about all the dangers of this world, and what a harsh place it can be - totally indifferent to the happiness, health, safety and well-being of a tiny cat family. To the natural world such an individual family and all the members of it are of no consequence - should they go to feed a raven or a street dog, that is just fine with the natural world.

So I thought of these things and I felt most uneasy. In a very short time, Tyskuit, Vasanthi and Murthy and Buddy would leave on another tour and we would be gone for three days. There would be other people at the house and they all knew about the cats; furthermore, the lady next door to the side had taken a strong interest and was feeding the mother. We could only hope for the best in a dangerous world.

And I felt something else as I watched the mother suckle her babies, as I saw the look of contentment, relief and happiness radiate from her countenace - solace. I felt a sense of solace that, whatever the future might hold for them, at this moment, they were together. They were safe. They were content. The kittens bellies were being filled.

They were experiencing this only because Tryskuit and I had taken action, and then the others had joined to help us. So, whatever sorrows the future might hold, this would be my solace - that we had given them this moment, this beautiful, beautiful, moment.

This story will continue.

Slash and Bronzy honor the Kracker Cats with The International Award

2009-06-14T21:09:00.007-08:00

My cats have received an award, and there it is, up above. It is called the International Bloggers Community award and it is among the highest honors we could ever have received - right up there with the Nobel and Pulitzer prize. So we thank you, Slash and Bronzy. It was sent June 9 but I have not had the time to formally accept it by making this post until now.

And let it be known that Bronzy is undergoing a health crisis right now - but is expected to recover. So, everybody pull for Bronzy!

The hard part about receiving such an award is that I must now pass it on to seven other bloggers. That means I must leave out the many bloggers whose work and cats I enjoy and admire and I hate to do that.

Anyway, I will pick five almost at random out of my cat bloggers list and let me say that everybody on that list is worthy of this great award. So, here are the seven mnnnnnnnnnn: (I was going to correct the "mnnnnnnn" but it was typed in by my black cat, Jimmy, so I realized that it was correct to begin with. Jimmy is never wrong.).

Standtall - The Activist - Africa is known for its great cats - lions, cheetahs and the like - but in all of Africa there are no greater cats than those that prowl the roof and sleep in the bed of my good friend, Standtall.

The newly-wed Michico - pet of the very serious Adan and impossibly mischievous Lego.

Zippy, Sadie and Speedy - Who are Kattonic, but definitely not catatonic. Sorry about your woofie buddy, Alfred

The felines at ourcatablog - would that all the cats in the world could receive the love and care these fortunate ones do.

The busy mom at kazokuneko who busies herself with the rescue of kittens

Sharyn - Things seems to have gone a little batty at the Kitty City Gazette lately.

Sweet Praline - just like candy, but if you lick her you will get fur on your tongue.

Us Four Gatos - these four go about meowing in Spanish.

Links for all these sites will soon appear to the right.

And here are the rules:

Link to the person who passed you this prize (that would be me).
Display the badge, the rules and the questionnaire in all or one of your blogs
Publish the date when the award had passed to you.
Answer four questions following this rule.
List at least seven (7) friends in its list of blogs.
Come back to BLoGGiSTa iNFo CoRNeR and leave the URL of your Post in order for you/your Blog to be added to the Master List.
Have fun!

The happy day for this little feline family - Tryskuit and I get to witness it

2009-06-11T20:05:00.001-08:00

As you can see, the three were very happy. They played and played. They had a very good time.

Kittens need to eat - and that means that a mom must eat. So she goes off in search of a meal.

And she finds it - right next door where a kindly lady has been putting out food for her. She dines, and soon her food will be kitten food.

She returns to the kittens.

They continue to play.

How they play!

I can't tell you why, but I find myself feeling very fond of these two - and their mother.

She nestles in the corner. They come to her. Maybe they will dine now.

Nope - they play on.

Next: big drama unfolds for the little cat family.

Tryskuit and I suffer a big scare, then find the family has moved inches upward

2009-06-10T18:44:00.004-08:00

We spent three days on the drive that took us past the roadside stop where we met the pregnant momma cat of the previous post and got the quick glimpse of the black kitten. We arrived back at the home of our Bangalore hosts about 4:00 AM.

After we got a few hours sleep, I arose, ate one of Vasanthi's exquisite breakfasts, then went out the back door, climbed up and took a peek into the alcove to see how the momma and her two kittens were doing.

They were gone! No sign of them.

Both Truskuit and I were very worried.

We searched, and we asked. We learned that they had been seen through a high kitchen window - the very window that you see here.

But even there, we could not see them.

Then, as I was sitting working on my laptop, I suddenly heard a call from Tryskuit. "Dad!" she said. "I found the kittens!"

I followed her to an overlook at the back of the house. The picture above is exactly what I saw.

I was so relieved.

The mother cat soon showed up.

Mom and her two kittens.

The calico snuggles up to the mom.

The orange sees something beneath the ventilator. What could it be?

We will never know, but, presumably, the orange found out.

The orange goes for the mom's tail.

The calico goes for the orange's tail.

The calico and the orange snuggle.

The scene, looking beyond. As you can see, the homes are all very close together.

The orange looks for a meal while the calico plays with Mom's tail.

Tryskuit and I, observing the beautiful little calico. As you can see, their new home is just below the small segment of tin roof. This is only inches above the alcove where they had been living.

This story will continue.

A momma cat on the Indian roadside

2009-06-07T21:30:00.000-08:00

Thanks to the heroic efforts of our taxi driver, Manju, we had safely descended from a tea farm at an elevation of about 8000 feet up in the mountainous area of Ooty, India, down a windy road through wild traffic to a rest stop that sits just before the entrance to a national park where elephants would appear in our headlights. We were hungry, so we stopped and ate another delicious Indian dinner.

As we waddled back to the taxi, I suddenly spotted an orange and white cat walking through the shadows to my left.

"Kitty!" I shouted to Tryskuit and Soundarya, the other cat lovers in the group. Then, as the others watched with bemusement, the three of us dashed over to meet her.

This is she and, as you can see, she is pregnant.

Tryskuit gives the pregnant orange cat a scritch.

Tryskuit and the pregnant orange cat.

Soundarya gives the pregnant orange cat a scritch.

Tryskuit watches as the pregnant orange cat strolls past.

A black kitten appears in front of a door. Soundarya strolls over to say "hi," hoping to give it a scritch, too.

But the black kitten is not a scritch taker. It dashes off.

Then we all climb back into the taxi. Manju drives us into the midst of the elephants of the steamy India night.

Soundarya meets the kittens

2009-06-05T22:11:00.008-08:00

I apologize for the long delay between this and my last post.

See the young woman holding the calico kitten? This is Soundarya Ravichandran, who long-time readers first met back in July of last year. Sandy is the whole reason that I came with Tryskuit to India this trip. I came to photograph her wedding. You know that fellow, Bill Hess, who lives in the parallel universe to mine?

He has been so busy trying to blog her wedding that I, Grahamn Kracker, have had no time to devote to this blog.

But I am blogging now. Sandy just retrieved the kitten from a little alcove above her.

Sandy hands the kitten to Tryskuit, but kisses it before she lets it go.

Tryskuit takes the kitten.

Tryskuit snuggles the kitten.

Sandy turns back to the alcove to get the orange and white kitten. The mother is worried.

Sandy with the orange and white kitten.

Sandy with both kittens.

Sandy is ecstactic! Once the business surrounding her upcoming wedding slows down, she decides that she will adopt the calico.

The mother cat is still worried.

Sandy reaches up to the mother cat.

She snuggles the entire family.

Sandy poses with the calico, who she wants to adopt.

For now, the kittens and their mother must go back to the alcove. Sandy kisses the calico good-bye.

Sandy with mom and calico.

Tryskuit hands the orange and white cat to Sandy so that she can place it back in the alcove.

Sandy takes the orange and white.

She places it back in the alcove.

The next day, I peek into the alcove and this is what I see. I am struck by the love of the mother and the preciousness of life - and by the danger, by the indifference of nature towards the well-being of any individual life; by the desire of the mother to protect her babies in the face of such a world, by the desire of the babies to live, to grow and gain experience.

This story will continue.

The Momma Cat and her two little kittens

2009-05-27T18:28:00.007-08:00

First, I apologize for leaving this story hanging for so long. During my two weeks in India, I had almost no time for blogging. In fact, Tryskuit and I spent very little time in Bangalore, as our hosts, Murthy and Vasanthi, took us traveling over a large section of Southern India.

Anyway, in the post I made way back when, I showed a picture of the Momma cat that we met shortly after we arrived at Murthy and Vasanthi's.

Tryskuit spotted the cat first, when she stepped out onto the second floor veranda. She called to me and I came running, peeked down, and this is what I saw. I clicked this image.

The sound of the click caused the cat to look up at me. I did not know if I had scared her.

She moved on, and I clicked her again as she passed by a motorcycle.

Then she went into some bushes.

A short time later, Buddy, the nephew of Murthy and Vasanthi, showed me her two kittens, up in a protected area in the eves of the house.

Frightened by my appearance, the calico hissed. I did not blame her for being frightened. Down below, there are street dogs. Up above, birds of prey. I stepped away, to let them be.

The Momma cat hears the meows of her babies and meows back.

This story will continue.

As soon as we settled down in Bangalore, India, a cat appeared - more on this to come

2009-05-08T18:20:00.006-08:00

It has been so long since I have posted a cat pic here! I did not see a single cat during my most recent wanderings in the Arctic. Afterward, I did spend a few days at home and I did take several Kracker cat pictures, but I never got the chance to post them.

Now I am in Bangalore, Karnataka, India, with Tryskuit and no sooner had we arrived when this mother cat appeared.

Mother cat?

That means there must be kittens, right?

Come back and find out.

Traveling - no cats met yet this trip

2009-04-26T18:34:00.003-08:00

First, I apologize for the long delay with neither post nor explanation. I am traveling. I had hoped that I might have met and photographed a cat or two or three or maybe 100 by now, but I have not even seen a single cat.

I will not be home until the end of the week, but I will keep my eyes and ears open and if I meet and photograph a cat, I will make a post.